Technology

China in space 2018: National launch record, commercial takeoff and far side of the Moon - GBTIMES

China smashed its record for orbital space launches in 2018 to boost the country's rival to GPS, help commercial companies take off and set a course for the far side of the Moon with the Chang'e-4 landing mission.

A record of 37 successful launches (with another set for December 29) has helped China bounce back from a mixed 2017 which was hit severely by the failure of its largest rocket, the Long March 5.

Overall the activity demonstrated China's expanding capabilities in civilian, commercial and military aspects of space and that there are serious long term plans being both devised and carried out.

Number one for launch rate

China smashed its record of 22 launches for a year, set in 2016, with 38 launches from three inland launch centres, lofting remote sensing, positiong, navigation and timing, communications, meteorological and reconnaissance satellites, as well as an array of small satellites and two lunar spacecraft missions.

This launch cadence also put China ahead of the United States and Russia for the first time. However, the launch rate is partly explained by needing to launch space infrastructure which the other two already have on-orbit, as well as catching up with delayed missions. China had aimed for around 30 launches in 2017, but managed just 18.

In terms of mass, China still only put into orbit around half the mass lofted by the United States in 2018.

Liftoff of the Long March 3B/G2 carrying the Beidou-3 M17 and M18 into medium Earth orbit at 18:07 on November 18, 2018. Ju ZhenhuaXinhua

The Long March 3 series of rockets completed 14 missions, launching from Xichang in the southwest of the country, which itself saw the launch of 17 missions. Another 15 or more are planned for 2019.

One of the negative consequences of these launches is felt downrange, where expended first stage boosters fall close to inhabited areas.

Spent rocket stage falls on town after Chinese satellite launch

The only failure was that of the a new rocket, Zhuque-1, which was the first attempt by a private Chinese firm to reach orbit, following a 2014 policy change allowing private capital into the space launch and satellite sectors.

The China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation (CASC), the country's main space contractor, had aimed for around 35 launches at the start of the year and achieved this target.

However, there will be frustration that the flagship Long March 5 heavy-lift launcher remains grounded despite expecting a return-to-flight late this year, as it awaits its large Shijian-20 payload. Signs are the rocket itself is ready however, following a first stage engine redesign and tests carried out in February.

Its failure in July 2017 heavily impacted China's major space plans, bringing delays to the Chinese Space Station project and the Chang'e-5 lunar sample return. Such issues are common with new rockets, as demonstrated by the now very reliable and comparable European Ariane 5.

The first Long March 5 rocket being rolled out for launch at Wenchang in late October 2016. Su DongChina Daily

Chang'e-4 lunar far side mission

The biggest mission of the year for China was hence the launch of the pioneering Chang'e-4 lander and rover. The pair are currently in lunar orbit ahead of an unprecedented attempt at a landing on the far side of the Moon in early January, backed up by the requisite 'Queqiao' ('magpie bridge') relay satellite.

The landing will target the intriguing South Pole-Aitken Basin in early January, with the final site understood to be the southern floor of the 186-km-diameter Von Kármán crater.

The lunar far side looks very different to the near side, with greater visible crater coverage and few of the maria—or dark basaltic 'seas'—created by lava flows that we can see with the naked eye on the near side. Why this is so remains a mystery and the answers will help our understanding of the Moon's history and even the development of the solar system.

Images of the near (left) and far side of the Moon. NASA

The overall mission also includes a microsatellite in lunar orbit, returning images from a student developed camera and another contributed by Saudi Arabia, as well as science payloads from the Netherlands, Sweden and Germany.

Linkspace meanwhile proceeded with its development of a launch vehicle capable of vertical takeoff, vertical landing (VTVL) which it aims to debut in 2020. Expace, a nominally private entity but closely-linked to huge state-owned defence contractor and missile maker CASIC, launched a Kuaizhou-1A rocket this year.

A second wave of launch companies including Galactic Energy and S-Motor have also been working in the background to get their rockets and engines ready to compete in the newly-opened Chinese launch market, initially targeting small launchers.

One staggering moment from the year saw amazing footage from the second OneSpace suborbital launch captured by an orbiting Earth observation video satellite developed by Chang Guang Satellite in Jilin, northeast China.

Private satellite sector

The small satellite sector has also been opened up in China in an attempt to foster innovation, and this year a range of private companies working on satellite constellations, providing satellite manufacturing services and developing payloads have reached space.

Chen Lan, an independent analyst, estimates that there are more than 100 startup space companies in China.

The Spacety team with the Xiaoxiang-2 and Quantutong-1 CubeSats. SPACETY

Reusability being taken seriously?

China's aforementioned issue with inland launch sites and downrange damage is one factor for developing and adopting reusable rockets, as are the spectacular and game-changing exploits of SpaceX.

While Landspace and Linkspace are working on their private VTVL launchers, CASC is also now working on a number of projects which could bring safer landings and reusable launchers. These include the Long March 8, Long March 6X (or other variants), as well as working on parafoils and other landing innovations for the Long March 3.

First footage of China using a parafoil for payload fairing reentry after satellite launch

Tiangong-1 makes uncontrolled return to Earth

China's first space lab, Tiangong-1 (????, or 'Heavenly Palace'), was launched in 2011 to test for docking in low Earth orbit and hosting astronauts and thus act as a stepping stone to developing much larger and more complex modules for the future Chinese Space Station.

After tests with the uncrewed Shenzhou-8 spacecraft, Tiangong-1 then tested life support systems by hosting two crews from the Shenzhou-9 and Shenzhou-10 missions in 2012 and 2013.

The crewed Shenzhou-10 spacecraft docking with Tiangong-1 space lab in June 2013. CCTV/Youtube

In early 2016, it became apparent that telemetry from the space lab had been lost, and the orbit of the 10.5 x 3.4 metre spacecraft could no longer be altered by its own propulsion and, due to atmospheric drag, Tiangong-1 would eventually make an uncontrolled atmospheric reentry.

That finally happened early on April 2, when the 8.4 tonne craft burned up over the South Pacific, with some debris reaching the water. The event brought an end to a media frenzy around the event, which had included overblown fears that the spacecraft could impact inhabited areas.

New astronaut selection and desert outing

China this year launched a process to select a new batch of 18 new astronauts for missions to the Chinese Space Station, including men and women from the air force and, for the first time, those with science and engineering backgrounds.

Meanwhile in May, 15 of China's current astronauts have completed a 19-day programme of field survival training in the Badain Jaran Desert in the northwest of the country, simulating an emergency return to Earth and landing scenario.

Cooperation in space

China has been boosting its cooperation in space in recent years, helping it to develop expertise and experience, share costs and demonstrate leadership in this extremely challenge sphere of activity and endeavour.

Chang'e-4 has notably involved teams from Sweden, the Netherlands, Saudi Arabia and Germany.

Zhangheng-1, also known as the China Seismo-Electromagnetic Satellite (CSES), was launched in February and involved collaboration between the China National Space Administration (CNSA) and Italian Space Agency (ASI).

In October the joint China-France Oceanography Satellite (CFOSat) lifted off from Jiuquan to gain new insights into ocean surface characteristics (winds and waves) and their impacts on the atmosphere-ocean exchanges.

The Long March 2C carrying CFOSat and a host of CubeSats lifts off from Jiuquan Satellite Launch Centre at 00:43 UTC on October 29, 2018. CNS

Also in October it was announced that the joint United Nations-China initiative to open the Chinese Space Station (CSS) to international partners has received 36 applications from a wide range of fields.

At the International Astronautical Congress (IAC) in Germany, CNSA head Zhang Kejian said the planned Chang’e-6 lunar sample return spacecraft would offer 10 kilograms of payload capacity to international partners to allow for a small experiment to join the mission.

Beidou navigation system

A main driving force behind the unprecedented Chinese launch rate was the desire for China to establish its own version of the United States' Global Positioning System (GPS).

The Beidou navigation system takes its name from the Chinese asterism equivalent to the Plough or Big Dipper and will provide civilian applications such as navigation for shipping and road traffic, mapping and surveying. However it will also assist military forces from space, facilitating targeting, positioning and locating, and the synchronising of operations. The development of Beidou will end previous Chinese military reliance on GPS.

Eight pairs of Beidou third stage medium Earth orbit satellites were launched in 2018 alone, and another backup satellite to geostationary orbit, with the aim of completing the Beidou global system in early 2020.

The Yuanwang-3 space tracking ship supporting the November 2018 launch of the Beidou-3 G1Q satellite. CNS